Maintenance friendly cages?

[kwong2001]

So I'm thinking of buying a different cage for Zoe. Right now she's in the Martin's Cage Chinchilla Townhouse (36" x 30" x 60"). She loves it, but admittedly it's REALLY big and probably more than she really needs. Plus it's EXTREMELY hard to keep clean. And there's areas where I flat out can't clean very well if at all.

So here's my question, are there any cages with more of an open space feel to them that are available? I.E. something that doesn't have ramps but rather, just ledges that she can jump from? I've seen some pictures of cages that are made predominantly of wood with just the front door having the metal mesh. Is there any place where I could order something like that? Know any leads of any custom cage builders?

 

[Ashley]

Have you looked at the ferret nation cages? They're pretty big, but very open and easy to clean. The doors open up completely in the front, which makes cleaning much easier. You would have to either build or buy wooden shelves for it because it comes with plastic. Take a look at the ferret nation club thread to see what people have done with theirs. The wooden cages with the metal fronts you're talking about sound like melamine cages to me. I have one, and it is very easy to clean as well. Most people build their own, but you might be able to find someone who could make one for you. One advantage of building your own is being able to customize everything, and get it just the way you want it. You could try posting in the classifieds to see if there's someone near you willing to build one, as they would be pretty difficult to ship.

 

[kwong2001]

Yeah, I'd like to build one of my own but don't have any wood shop tools to do it. I e-mailed the breeder I bought Zoe from to see if maybe she knows anyone who can do it. Maybe she can build one, she made the nest box for Zoe.

 

[gella]

I find my Quality Cage Mansion is easy to clean - I have the 2 door model and the bottom one is large enough for me to fit most of my torso in (though I am a bit of a small person) and having them on the stand helps for getting the wire underneath the pan after you pull it out.